About Our Personal Support Agency in East Tennessee

Personal Care Choices is one of the largest personal support services agencies in East Tennessee, and we have been providing overall care management services since 1996.

We serve approximately 13 counties in East Tennessee – from the southern tip of Jefferson County to the southwestern edge of Hamilton County and every community in between.

The one-on-one care that clients receive from Personal Care Choices allows them to remain independent. From senior care to disability services and from working with individuals with special needs to those who need transitional care after an illness, injury, or surgery, we are the next best thing to family.

With nearly 100 caregivers licensed, bonded and insured on staff, Personal Care Choices is here to serve you and your family with all of your non-medical in-home care needs.

For every staff member, we perform drug tests and criminal and civil background checks as part of the pre-employment screening process. All caregivers are first aid and CPR-certified, and each caregiver receives over 40 hours of specialized training to meet the needs of each and every client.

We pride ourselves on matching the right client with the right caregiver. Our caregivers and clients are assigned to one another based on personal preferences in an effort to achieve the right personality fit. No two clients are alike, and customization of care is key to meeting the needs of our clients.

Caregivers openly communicate with family members of the client to ensure that the individual receives the proper care at all times. Caregivers maintain note sheets at each visit to document the caregiver's time with the client.

Personal Care Choices is devoted to providing excellent in-home care for you or your loved ones. Our staff or caregivers are carefully chosen by our human resources to ensure that you will be given the right staff or caregiver that best fits the needs of you or your loved ones. Personal Care Choices promotes and encourages relationship-building between caregivers and their clients which help when providing services to maintain the maximum level of independence for the client possible, and to preserve their personal dignity and respect them as the individual that they are. We know you want caregivers you can trust without question. To ensure you receive the highest-quality home care possible, all caregiver applicants must complete our extensive screening process, as well as complete and pass an internet based program.

Staff Checklist:

Background Checks

ABSO, background check ran through authority database, which includes local background checks and national background checks (NCIC)

Personal Care Choices began in 1996 as Senior Choices by Blount County Social Worker Sandy Bell. Sandy started the company with a very small office and a very small agenda: Take care of the elderly.

In 2001, Sandy was working with Brian Tuggle through the Blount County Chamber of Commerce. She asked Brian if he knew any business owners who may be interested in buying her company. Brian looked at what she had built and saw a strong foundation to grow on.

After careful consideration, Brian took Sandy to dinner one night and told her that he had found a new owner for her company. When Sandy inquired who the buyers were, Brian told her it was him along with a business partner.

With business partner Kimberley Tuggle, they purchased the company in 2002.

The first six months, co-owners Brian and Kim didn't change anything.

"The last thing we wanted to do was come into the company and be a bull in a china shop," Brian said.

Brian added, "It's already enough to have a caregiver come in and provide personal care services and handle care for a loved one. We didn't want to ruffle any feathers."

After those first six months, the new owners set in motion new policy changes to help the company run better.

In 2003, the Tennessee Department of Mental Health approached Senior Choices as they were looking for providers to work with the Division of Mental Retardation.

"At first, we rejected it," Brian said. "We knew how to take care of the elderly. The elderly is what we knew. We knew all their needs and everything else."

Eventually, they found the proposal to be a good fit.

"When we looked at it harder, we realized the mentally and physically challenged folks need the exact same level of care as some of our seniors," Brian said.

The company agreed to serve the new demographic, and the brand was expanded to Personal Care Choices.

"Thank goodness we did because it's a much needed service out there," Brian said. "We're blessed to have the caregivers we have and the clients who need us."

Currently, the company has nearly 100 caregivers, 6 management staff, and roughly 150 +/- clients in 13 counties in East Tennessee.

The corporate headquarters are located in Maryville, TN, with satellite office in Cleveland.

"One of our philosophies is that if we have a client in Anderson County, we want to have a caregiver in Anderson County," Brian said. "We need to make sure hometown people are taking care of hometown people."

The future of Personal Care Choices looks bright as in 2011 and 2012 the company celebrated back-to-back perfect audits from the State of Tennessee, which is a rare feat for any personal care company.